Geauga Park District is pleased to announce its acquisition of the property formerly known as Wicked Woods Golf Course, a 180-acre parcel located at the corner of Routes 44 and 87 in Burton and Newbury township, after the Board of Park Commissioners voted to approve the purchase November 13.
“We are grateful to Ed and Connie Babcock for the sale of Wicked Woods Golf Course to Geauga Park District,” Executive Director John Oros said. “The Babcocks have a love of Nature, parks and the Geauga County community at large, and we are thankful they chose Geauga Park District for the sale of this beautiful property. Their choice will serve as a lasting legacy, conserving this land for generations to come.”
“While we will not operate a golf course on the property, we are confident we can create a park setting revolving around our mission to preserve, conserve and protect the natural features of Geauga County,” Oros continued. “At the same time, we will continue to work hard to maintain the momentum gained the past five years in providing more accessibility to park-owned lands. We will continue to provide our residents with a variety of outdoor recreational experiences in Nature; park staff will continue to provide creatively designed park infrastructure and facilities; and naturalists will continue to offer adventurous programs and fun special events.”
Geauga Park District will take possession of the property at 14085 Ravenna Road on January 1, 2019, per the $1.5 million agreement. Among plans for this new park is the potential for a brand new kind of Park District offering: a farm-to-table restaurant. A request for qualifications/proposals to lease the property’s former club house and banquet facility will be issued in early 2019, Oros said.
“From locally produced maple syrup, to locally grown produce from orchards and farms, to Amish-raised produce and livestock, Geauga County offers our local chefs the opportunity to create truly special cuisine,” Oros said. “Our hope is to attract a skilled restauranteur and executive chef one who has a passion for creating a culinary experience presenting food offerings from our local farms and culinary resources.”
Additionally, Natural Resource Management staff will develop plans to restore the land to a natural state, similar to the work done at the Park District’s Orchard Hills Park in Chesterland.
Park Biologist Paul Pira said he assessed the property this summer and was pleased with its quality. These lands protect the west branch of the Cuyahoga River featuring nice natural habitats: home to amphibians along the river, freshwater mussels in the stream, and a diversity of native wildflowers along the shore. Many streams travel through the golf course, as well as blocks of mature forest.
“There’s also something called coldwater habitat on the property, which are streams fed primarily by groundwater,” Pira said. “That’s something that’s pretty uncommon for Ohio, and provides habitat for a number of unique species of fish and insects that rely on that really cold water to live.”
Paul Pira, Geauga Parks Biologist
“Restoration-wise, we’ve learned things over the years at Orchard Hills Park that we will apply here, some different approaches,” he said. “For instance, we will probably end up trying to maintain some of the mowed areas before we are able to plant trees or reseed with native plants. Doing this will help us avoid undesirable turf grasses and weed species repeatedly going to seed in the meantime.”
“It’s interesting, a neat challenge,” Pira concluded. “You don’t get to start from scratch often. This is an opportunity to start over on a really nice piece of land.”
Pending a potential lease agreement for the facility onsite, reservations will not be available in 2019. Updates will be posted to www.geaugaparkdistrict.org as soon as they become available.
“We appreciate your patience as we plan for the future of this exciting new park,” Oros said. “With it, we hope to continue to engage our residents in unique and exciting ways while providing meaningful park services.”
For more on Geauga Park District offerings, please call 440-286-9516 or visit Geauga Park District online via www.geaugaparkdistrict.org, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube.
